Philanthropist-investor Richard Rainwater dies at 71

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Richard Rainwater, the son of a North Texas grocer who went on to amass a fortune as an investment manager before becoming a billionaire investor and philanthropist in his own right, has died, according to his charitable foundation. He was 71.

A statement issued by the Rainwater Charitable Foundation says Rainwater died Sunday morning at his Fort Worth, Texas, home after a long battle with a rare neurological disease. He had been battling progressive supranuclear palsy since 2009 and had pumped millions into a campaign to finding a cure.

The president of Rainwater Inc. also confirmed the death.

Among Rainwater's career achievements was conducting billionaire investor Sid Bass' acquisition of a major stake in the Walt Disney Co. and partnering with future President George W. Bush in the 1989 purchase of the Texas Rangers baseball team.